This invention relates broadly to the art of devices for creating and displaying visual representations of sound and, in particular, a system for converting music into colored configurations portraying the music.
Prior art systems related to converting sound into visual representations are described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,500,646 to Riesz; 2,804,500 to Giacoletto; 3,175,121 to Birnbaum et al; 3,581,192 to Miura et al; 3,604,852 to Weintraub; 3,612,755 to Tadlock; 3,627,912 to Hearn; 3,723,652 to Alles et al; and 3,742,125 to Siegel.
Many of these patents, such as Giacoletto (2,804,500), describe systems which include filters for separating musically-derived signals into three contiguous frequency bands and applying the detected envelopes of the bands to corresponding red, blue, and green control grids of tri-color kinescopes. When complex signals are applied to such systems, such as music, complex, changing, geometric patterns of color are produced which are incoherent due to use of non-musical fixed frequency deflection signals. In addition, most music has a predominance of low, medium, or high frequencies such that patterns of one primary color or primary color combination, becomes monotonously prevalent in such systems, due to lack of color signal phase control. Thus, it is an object of this invention to provide a music display device whose patterns of color are coherent and the color combinations are not monotonous.
Riesz (2,500,646) describes a system for splitting a speech-derived signal into two contigous frequency bands and applying the signals of each of these frequency bands to orthogonal beam deflection circuits, there being a 90.degree. phase difference between the signals fed to the orthogonal deflection circuits. Riesz points out that this arrangement produces a stationary or fixed trace, or pattern, on a cathode ray tube's flourescent screen whenever the signals are in the ratio of integers. The fixed patterns depicted and described by Riesz are five-petaled rosettes, although his system is not limited to such a pattern. Riesz's system allows individual tones in speech to create such patterns by coincidence. If the signal were a musically-derived signal, such a system would create images which would be unduly jumbled due to quadrature phase distortion over a wide frequency range, so that an observer could not easily distinguish patterns related to music. It is therefore yet another object of this invention to provide a system for displaying representations of music in the form of well formed, symmetrical, coherent patterns, easily followed by an observer.
Many of the patents listed above describe systems which are compatible with normal television sets. That is, they employ the normal horizontal and vertical deflection circuits of television sets to be used therewith. Such systems create color patterns which are displayed in cooperation with existing vertical and horizontal scans. These systems are quite complicated in structure and, because they are limited to a fixed system of vertical and horizontal scans, their images are generally lacking in excitement. Thus, it is an object of this invention to provide a system for creating color configurations representative of music whose patterns are intimately related to all of the physical characteristics of music so as to be exciting but yet are coherent and distinguishable.